Drew Petrie says North’s ability to cover the loss of key players is what sets it apart from previous years.

Todd Goldstein, the reigning Syd Barker Medalist was a late withdrawal on Friday night, but Petrie said the Roos had full confidence in his replacement, Majak Daw.

“The fact that he (Goldstein) didn’t play and Majak did … it probably builds confidence in all the other players that are running around in the VFL at the moment,” he told RSN.

“The message that gets told to our guys playing in the VFL is ‘bring an AFL standard to that competition’.

“Majak’s done that. Trent’s (Dumont) done that. So when they come in, they are certainly game-ready.”

Petrie said North was no longer reliant on a handful of players, with its depth and maturity across the board holding the club in good stead.

“We probably need more than one guy to go down to lose. That’s a good position to be in.

“The load’s being spread across so many players that a lot more guys have to go down, before you blame personnel for maybe losing a game.”

While Goldstein will push his case for a return this week, the Roos will be without Sam Wright, sidelined for six to eight weeks with an ankle injury.

The likes of Dumont, Aaron Mullett and Lachlan Hansen are likely to be among those in the mix for a call-up.